Angel
by kamikaze-bulma
Summary: Twists of fate often lead to somewhere or to someone that you'd least expect. With the loss of Goku, Chichi is broken but not out. Check out this twisty fic and you'll never regret it!
1. The News

A/N: How are all you lovely readers out there? Just peachy keen ici, of course! Well, I've been spending most of my time brainstorming for this story, and what a devious mind I have! I swear you will complement me on how my mind works. And I would also like to plead for my life: G/CC lovers: DON'T KILL ME! Anyhow, that's enough bragging/pleading, here's some music that will get you in the mood for this story and some songs that inspired me to write this story: "Angel," Amanda Perez and "Un-break My Heart," Toni Braxton. Great sad songs if you ask me, but they really set the mood. Onward to the story! Go on, I'll let you.  
  
Angel  
  
And there he was. His charcoal eyes staring right back into hers, burning with a fire of desire that she had never seen before. As he inched closer and closer to her, she could feel his extravagant body heat rise with every aching second. Her heart skipped beats unexpectedly, just like the first time. Her breathing rate rose tremendously as he was now seconds from making contact with her lips.  
  
She hated to ruin this moment by thinking of Goku, but she couldn't help but wonder why Goku, through all their years of marriage, never made her feel close to this needed. No matter what thoughts ran through her mind, she knew they would always lead back to Goku, this dilemma that she and this man put themselves into would always lead back to Goku. She frowned and looked at the ground. She evaded any eye contact with this man she needed now more than life itself.  
  
He sensed she was hurting now more than ever because of the recent events and because of their situation. He calmly lifted his hands to her ivory face and lifted it - waiting until she looked in his eyes once again.  
  
"It's been so long and I nearly forgot… What are we going to do?" Chichi asked out loud, and collapsed into his arms. He held her tightly knowing they would need to find a solution, even if it would kill him. Chichi's obsidian eyes closed as so many thoughts ran through her mind as she thought all the way back to the beginning of all this mess, back when she didn't have to worry about anything other than her own selfish gain.   
  
It was not too long ago that Goku had departed from the land of the living, but he returned to do what he did best: fighting. However, it was unknown to everyone that it would not be his last farewell.  
  
Chichi sat on her living room floor sobbing in her father's arms, praying for the safe return of her only son and her beloved husband. Before she had completely demolished her own television set, Cell had the upper hand in the situation and poor Gohan was suffering from Cell's every blow.  
  
'How could Goku be so careless as to let my baby go into battle like that?' she would scream in her mind over and over again.  
  
A familiar cold sweat consumed her being and blackness surrounded her vision as Chichi finally collapsed under her own stress.  
  
"Mother!"  
  
Chichi fluttered her eyes open to see a beaten and bruised young man staring straight back at her.   
  
"Oh, my baby!" Chichi said while letting out a cry of relief. She quickly took a hold of Gohan in a death-grip hug. But even with Gohan finally at her side again, Chichi only felt half-alive.  
  
"Honey, where's your father?" Chichi whispered slightly, jetting her eyes around the room quickly, but to no avail. "Is he outside?"  
  
For a moment, Gohan could only respond with some unrevealing facial expressions.  
  
"He sacrificed his life to save us," he finally reluctantly said. "We wanted to wish him back along with everyone else, but..."  
  
Silence filled the room for a few heart-tearing moments.  
  
"But, he didn't want us to waste a wish on him. That's what happened," Gohan finished, trying very hard to keep his own emotions in check.  
  
It took a few seconds before Chichi felt any emotion at all. Tears began to blur her vision and sparkled through her dark eyes creating a river of painful tears down her cheeks.  
  
"Mom, don't cry," he consoled, taking his broken mother into his strong boyish arms.  
  
"It just isn't fair," she murmured under her heaving gasps for air. "Damn him."  
  
Chichi stood up and sprinted to the living room window and shouted at the top of her lungs, "Damn you Goku!"  
  
~*~  
  
A few hours had passed which allowed reality to set in and enable Chichi to have a decent conversation with her son.  
  
"I can see you've come much stronger; a trait of your father's," Chichi said, smiling for the first time since Goku had left her sight.  
  
"Yeah," Gohan replied happily. Seeing his mother this way made him feel able to move on. "We trained in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. One day is equivalent to a whole year!"  
  
"I'm impressed," Chichi responded to keep his spirit up.  
  
"I still can't see how dad had the time to train himself, he seemed to just be training me. It was insane!"  
  
"I can only imagine," she replied. "I better make dinner. I bet you've worked up quite and appetite in that fight of yours."  
  
"I sure did!" he cried in delight, portraying a classic Son grin, almost looking like a twin of Goku himself. "Thanks mom."  
  
During her walk to the kitchen, memories of Goku raced through her mind. Suddenly, a contradictory feeling of reassurance overwhelmed her senses. 'I can do this,' she said to herself. 'I did it alone before, I can do it again.' 


	2. Living Without Him

No matter how much Chichi tried to continue living her life as normal as possible, it became increasingly difficult with every passing moment.  
  
It was true; she had gone through this once before. When Goku died while fighting his brother Raditz, it devastated her, but when he went to the planet Namek, it nearly killed her. He didn't actually die, but he did not want to come home. Why is it that Goku never wants to come home? Does he not love her? What made her so undesirable that he never wanted to come back to her? These thoughts and more plagued Chichi's mind constantly. Every second of thought made her feel just that much more worthless. If Gohan had left her as well, life would have no meaning - only he motivated her to wake every morning.  
  
Yet another day had passed, another drawn-out day without Goku. If one had counted the days as Chichi did, they would count exactly five weeks   
  
since that fateful battle with Cell.  
  
As she stared at her only son, it made her sad to think of what he is forced to go through; growing up never knowing when or if he would ever see his own father. Chichi often wondered if Gohan even knew this person he proudly calls "father." Chichi brushed the hair away from the sleeping boys' eyes. Gohan responded by letting out a small moan and shifted slightly. She smiled and decided it was time for her to sleep as well.  
  
Once she entered her barren bedroom, she slowly closed the door behind her and shrugged off her cotton bathrobe revealing the rather not-so-there nightgown. Chichi walked over to the open window across the room and sat on the small bench in front of it.  
  
'So beautiful,' she thought as she took a glimpse outside, the warm summer breeze tickled and teased at Chichi's skin and hair. She tilted her neck to the side and slightly touched her fingers to her neck, letting contact last for the briefest of moments. When she closed her eyes she could see and almost feel the light kisses from Goku's lips upon her skin. But when she opened her eyes once again, the heavenly sensation and memory faded rapidly leaving her feeling empty again. Instinctively, she wrapped her arms around herself and cried like every other night, crying until she had not a single tear left to shed or energy left to give.  
  
~*~  
  
Daylight broke, and Gohan burst into his mother's room to only find her where he's found her almost everyday, sitting at that same window and half-clothed. It broke him up to see his mother like this everyday, so it was time to get her out and about today, time to get her socializing and get her mind off of Goku.  
  
Gohan went into the kitchen and began to cook breakfast for a change. The customary smell of fried dinosaur eggs and steak aroused Chichi's senses enough to wake her up from her sleep. Barely awake, she tossed on her bathrobe, and with her eyelids still half-draped over her eyes, she trudged into the kitchen area. Her eyes instantly opened when she saw Gohan offering her a plate of food.  
  
"Well, this is different. Why didn't you tell me you were hungry?" Chichi asked through a yawn, taking the plate and sitting down.  
  
"Nah, you deserve it," Gohan said with a smile. "Oh, eat fast, okay?"  
  
"What for?"  
  
"Bulma invited us over this morning. She wants to have a little social hour." Gohan stuffed some of the food from his enormous plate into his mouth and chewed rather messily.  
  
"Honey, I don't think I'm really up to going out today..." Chichi frowned a bit, and looked up at her child with an insincere smile.  
  
"But mooooom..." Gohan whined, giving her the 'puppy dog' eyes. "I want to play with baby Trunks!"  
  
Chichi sat and contemplated for a while whether she should or not. "I guess it couldn't hurt."  
  
"Yay!" Gohan quickly engulfed all of the food on his plate and ran to his room to change. Chichi genuinely smiled and began to eat her food as well.  
  
~*~  
  
Gohan excitedly rang the doorbell to the Capsule Corp. and hopped a little. No matter how strong Gohan was he was still a little boy. Bulma opened the door and beamed. Baby Trunks crawled to the door to see who the visitors were this time. Bulma stepped aside to gesture for them to come inside. Gohan darted past her and snatched Trunks into his arms, making the baby laugh wickedly.  
  
"Long time, no see Chichi," Bulma chimed, following up with a hug. "I hope you're okay."  
  
"Don't worry about me, I'm fine." Chichi allowed herself in and noticed a figure walking in from the backdoor. It was Vegeta obviously coming in from the gravity chamber. He looked a tad pissed, so Chichi quickly looked away and sat herself in the living room.  
  
"How has life treated you, Bulma?" Chichi wondered out loud. "Good I see."  
  
"Yeah, but... quit it Chichi!" Bulma demanded. Surprised by her words, Chichi looked at her rather stunned.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Never mind. Oops, I left Yamcha all alone in the kitchen. I hope Trunks didn't bite him like he did a couple of days ago..."  
  
Chichi let out a giggle as she followed Bulma into the kitchen area. Yamcha was sitting on a chair looking relaxed reading the morning newspaper.  
  
"I thought I was going to be in here alone forever. I knew it was you Chichi," Yamcha said, placing his paper down and taking a sip of coffee.  
  
"You practically live here, so why does that matter, Yamcha?" Bulma retorted. "Anyhow, I invited Chichi over so we could catch up on things, so unless you're going to act grown up, you can leave now."  
  
"Whoa, settle down tiger," he said sarcastically. "Fine by me."  
  
Bulma poured Chichi and herself a cup of tea, and sat down with everyone at the table.  
  
"You know, I don't really feel like talking about him right now..." Chichi said before anyone had a chance to interrogate her about anything. "I've accepted that he's dead for good now, and I can live with it, I just want to have a life right now."  
  
"I understand." Bulma smiled slightly. "How's Gohan been?"  
  
Chichi and Bulma talked for what seemed only minutes, but turned into hours. Five months obviously left a lot for the two old friends to talk about. Every once in a while, Yamcha would include himself in the conversation, only if it didn't include shopping. A baby crying in the distance disrupted their eternal talking session.  
  
"Bulma! Trunks needs a diaper change!" Gohan yelled from the living room.  
  
"That kid, I swear," Bulma fussed. "I'll be back."  
  
Bulma left the room. It seemed as though Bulma was the only reason why Yamcha and Chichi talked at all.  
  
"Personally, you don't seem too happy," Yamcha blatantly said.  
  
Chichi looked at him and narrowed her eyes. "Oh?"  
  
"You're obvious," he pointed out, now staring her straight in the eyes. "Goku was a great guy, you can't be over him that quick."  
  
"Why... no one asked you..." Chichi said defensively.  
  
"Believe me," he said, his eyes saddening. Bulma walked in the room again. Yamcha pointed with his eyes toward Bulma and said, "I know because I still can't."  
  
Bulma looked a bit perplexed. "Did I miss something?"  
  
"No, not at all," Chichi replied. Yamcha stood and reached in his pocket and pulled out a watch. "Yamcha was just..."  
  
"Getting ready to go home, lots of work to finish," he quickly finished her sentence. As he walked toward the door, he gave Chichi eye contact just before he was completely out. Chichi didn't know how to react to him. She couldn't even tell what message he was sending her... or if she was just being ridiculous.  
  
"Well, that was strange," Bulma said rolling her eyes. "He didn't offend you did he?"  
  
"No, he just... never mind." Chichi laughed a little and gathered her belongings. "I bet you're tiring of my company, and I have some things I have to do, so I'll see you around I guess."  
  
"Chichi, you know I never tire of you. What's with you?" Bulma asked, a little worry in her voice.  
  
"Don't be so concerned, Bulma, you'll get gray hairs like me."  
  
Bulma laughed, and walked her over to the front door. "I'm here Chichi, just call me."  
  
Chichi smiled and nodded.  
  
"Gohan! We're leaving!" Chichi called to her son. "Thank you for getting me out today, I needed it."  
  
"Any time."  
  
Gohan ran around the corner, looking a little worn out. "Bye Bulma," he said, smiling at her.  
  
"Don't be a stranger!" 


	3. Yamucha, Friend and Lover

Chichi sat up for hours in her bed wondering why Yamcha would even care to sympathize with her. But then again, he had been through a lot with Bulma, and now she was the happy companion of Vegeta. Ouch, Chichi thought, no wonder his ego is torn.  
  
Lately she found a hobby that kept her from feeling so depressed. She opened her journal and began to spill details about the day with her black ink. It made her feel better to express her feelings in a journal since she really had no one to talk to about everything she was feeling.  
  
She finished her recent entry and hugged it to her chest as she fell onto her bed. She felt so much more relief now that she could let everything out. Gohan insisted that she get out more often, but she knew life will never be like it was, and she could never achieve that height of happiness ever again. But given the cards that Kami had dealt her, she has to traverse the worst time in her life and make the best of it, and that is was she is going to do.  
  
~*~  
  
As soon as Gohan fell asleep, she put on her robe and decided to spend some time outdoors. She went out her front door and sat on the part of the hill where she could see a wonderful view of the mountainside. Although she had never stargazed with Goku, she was glad that they never had. It would just be another painful memory for her to remember.  
  
She reclined and watched as the eternal stars blinked and shined brilliantly. Mentally picking out constellations in the sky, she came across a lone cloud group that formed the shape of Goku's face. No matter how hard she tried to just be happy, tears still formed in her eyes.  
  
"Beautiful night, isn't it?"  
  
Alarmed, Chichi sat up and looked around. She couldn't see anyone and fear began to build in her nerves. A silhouette formed by a tree close to her. As he stepped closer to her, his facial features became clear.  
  
"Yamcha? What are you doing here?" Chichi managed to say, obviously still a little shaken up.  
  
"Walking," he replied. Yamcha walked over and took a seat next to her on the grass. "It helps me clear my mind every once and a while."  
  
"Ditto. But what brought you this far?" she inquired, no one really knew about her house except for a few.  
  
"I was thinking about you," he said quickly.  
  
Chichi stared at him stunned, and blushed a little. Why? She kept asking herself through the silence that took over their small conversation.  
  
She cleared her throat and asked, "Really?"  
  
"Yeah, I couldn't help but sympathize for you," he said.  
  
"The last thing I need is for someone like you to 'sympathize' with me. You will never understand the amount of pain I'm in right now," Chichi snapped. Silence once again hovered over their conversation.  
  
"Look, I'm sorry that didn't come out right. Let me start again. I know what you're going through."  
  
"Hardly. My husband is dead. What do you think about that, huh? And don't compare my situation with your ongoing 'thing' with Bulma, and at least she's still alive."  
  
"Wow, you think everything is just about you, don't you?" he shot back at her. "Sure, my heartache isn't as significant as yours, but I thought you could use someone to talk to who's felt something close to what you're enduring. But since your problems are obviously bigger than everyone else's so that you can't even let down your defenses, it seems you just want people to feel sorry for you. Yeah, Bulma is still alive, but you don't understand either Chichi.  
  
"Every time I see her, it's like a part of me dies. I don't know how to explain it, but I know that I have to get over it. It's not like I had a support group to help me get over her, so it's been a long process. A little too long if you ask me."  
  
"Did you just come out here to verbally abuse me, or what?" Chichi asked. "Okay, you've made your point, we're in the same boat, but why? Why do you care about me and what I'm feeling?"  
  
"I don't know. I honestly don't think I can come up with a reason for why I'm here. I thought that I could just talk to you."  
  
"It looks like we have that covered," Chichi pointed out. She shivered a little but gazed on into the heavens. "T-thanks."  
  
He smiled. "Now I've gotten somewhere."  
  
Chichi blinked and shot a slight smile at him, which grew slowly until she was genuinely smiling again.  
  
"See?" he teased. He shook off his pullover sweater and handed it to her.  
  
She shook her head, yet accepted it from him. It was weird to her; Chichi felt calm for the first time in a month, and it was around someone she least expected. As she made small talk with him thoughts and realizations hit her. Was he the answer to her endless prayers? Never had she thought that her wish for an angel to console her would come in the form of an old friend, especially him. However, Chichi knew deep down this was a start of a friendship with this angel Kami had finally sent to her.  
  
~*~  
  
The sun finally peaked over the distant mountains waking the two who had drifted asleep outside. Chichi found herself snuggled next to Yamcha and his arms around her.  
  
Her eyes opened wide as she searched her mind frantically to see if she had done anything unfit last night, but nothing came to mind. All she remembered was the pleasant conversation she had with Yamcha until she apparently drifted off to sleep. She smiled and stretched, eventually waking the man lying next to her.  
  
He blinked rapidly until he completely regained consciousness. As he yawned, he followed Chichi into her house without an invite knowing it was implied.  
  
Gohan sleepily walked into the living room to find his mother and Yamcha having a cup of tea. He rubbed his eyes and glanced again to make sure he wasn't seeing things.  
  
"Good morning Gohan," Yamcha greeted and sipped his tea. Chichi motioned for her son to join them at the table.  
  
"Hi Yamcha, what are you doing here?" he asked. Gohan was a smart boy; he knew it was very early in the morning, especially for someone like Yamcha.  
  
"I stopped by to have a few words with your mother of course. Just checking' up on her, you know."  
  
Gohan nodded slightly and poured himself some tea and set his mind on something else. Then he noticed the sweater on his mom and instantly knew that it wasn't one of hers.  
  
"As a matter of fact, I was just leaving," Yamcha said as he stood up from his chair. "I'll talk to you two later."  
  
While he walked past the two, he rubbed Gohan's head and smiled at Chichi. Gohan glanced at his mother with a perplexed look. Whatever happened between the two, it made his mom ten times happier, he could tell it in her eyes. But he couldn't tell if he was too happy with what might happen. 


	4. The Unexpected

A few days had passed and Gohan noticed that his mother had nothing but starry eyes and seemed very happy. She also continued to wear the same unknown sweater every once and a while.  
  
"Mom, is that you're sweater?" Gohan asked.  
  
She looked down and recognized that she was still wearing Yamcha's sweater.  
  
"I guess not. I'll have to return it to Yamcha later. Meanwhile, I know you haven't taken a bath in quite a while. I'll prepare a bath for you."  
  
"But mom," Gohan pleaded.  
  
"No buts mister, you're taking a bath," she said mother-like. Gohan sighed in defeat and walked away from the table. "By the way, you're staying at Bulma's tonight!"  
  
Gohan stopped in his tracks at his mother's words. What? He thought to himself.  
  
"I thought you could use some training," she smiled. "You've done plenty of studying for the past couple of days. You don't want to get too rusty."  
  
Gohan's eyes were practically bulging out of his sockets. He could not believe what she was saying!  
  
"O-okay, mom," he barely said. No sense in arguing.  
  
~*~  
  
This is the fourth day that Yamcha decided that he wouldn't go to work, but compared to everyone and everything going on in his life, work did not seem important anymore.  
  
Yamcha proceeded to warm a TV dinner and sat down in front of the TV set. Bored out of his wits he turned it off and reclined in his chair. Why could he not get Chichi off of his mind? For Kami's sake… she was his best friend's wife! But he knew why he was having feelings for her, it's not like this hadn't happened before. Chichi was at a very vulnerable point in her life. Goku passed away for the second time and she was left with all of the grief. Bulma must have felt this way when he died when he fought Vegeta and Nappa. It was not easy to get over anyone, especially someone he loved as deeply as he did her, but he knew they both had to move on.  
  
A smile approached his lips as he took a stroll down memory lane. The first time he had met Chichi was a disaster. She was so young and mesmerized by little Goku, and he had his own problems with Bulma.  
  
"Those were the days," he said to himself. He never once thought of what his life would be like if he hadn't met Goku and his friends… that would not be a life he would enjoy.  
  
However, not even Chichi would find him the least bit needed in her life, and every attempt to get close to her would be in vain.  
  
No, he thought, I've settled down from the man I used to be, and I know what I'm feeling.  
  
The ringing of the phone interrupted his thoughts.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Um…" replied the voice.  
  
"Who is this?" he asked impatiently.  
  
"It's Chichi," she warily answered. How did she get my number? he thought.  
  
"Hi. Is everything alright?"   
  
"Yes, I'm fine. Everything's okay, but I was just calling to ask you if…" she shied away from finishing the sentence.  
  
"If…"  
  
"Would you like to come over for dinner?" she asked very quickly. They seemed to just have fun in stunning each other with their actions.  
  
Yamcha wondered about how he should answer her question. He glanced down to his not-so-warm TV dinner and smiled.  
  
"Sure. I'll be over at 5:00."   
  
Chichi felt like she could breathe again. Of course she had no idea why in any world she would ask Yamcha over for dinner. What ever happens, happens, she thought to herself.  
  
~*~  
  
After preparing food large enough for an army, she decided to clean herself up and change into some clothes more suitable for this occasion.   
  
I feel like a little girl! She thought to herself once again. Little thoughts of dating again flew continuously, which made her blush. After all, Goku had not been around for ages now. The ten days before the Cell games or even the three years before the androids was not enough to make up for him leaving her the countless times before. She remembered him kissing her just once throughout those 10 days.  
  
"Enough thinking about Goku, he doesn't want to come home," she said confidently pulling her favorite violet kimono over her head. Chichi let her hair down for the first time for someone other than Goku. "That stupid bun adds about ten years."  
  
She brushed her hair out and giggled. She never felt so young, but maybe it was the surge of feelings that she felt every time she thought of Yamcha. Whatever it was, she knew that she would never feel like this again.   
  
"Food smells great," said a voice from behind her. Chichi spun around and smiled as she looked at Yamcha.  
  
"Thanks, I cooked all day," she replied sarcastically. "I'll be there in a sec, okay?"  
  
Yamcha nodded as he walked back to the dining room. Chichi took one last look into the mirror, sighed, and proceeded toward the dining room as well.  
  
During dinner, there was a frequent silence for a few reasons. One mainly because Yamcha was so engulfed in her food that if he spoke, he would have definitely choked. Another reason was because they would often catch each other staring at one another.  
  
Chichi and Yamcha felt very comfortable in each other's presence that the conversation just seemed to flow, and what made her feel even better: not once was Goku mentioned.  
  
Yamcha was always a well-dressed man, so she couldn't tell if he was dressed nicely to see her or not. Either way, he looked very attractive, in a rugged type of way. He was dressed in khaki pleated pants and a white button-up shirt, his hair as unruly as usual. There was just an essence about him that made Chichi want to blush.  
  
While she sat and thought about him, Yamcha was doing the same. He couldn't help but be consumed with her looks. With her hair down, she was like a totally different woman, not the slave-driving one he often saw. Her eyes were much softer lately and shone with a brilliance of a truly happy person. He definitely put her under the 'sexy' category, which was strange because she was Chichi for Kami's sake! But he couldn't help himself.  
  
As soon as dinner was finished, Chichi began to clear the table. She was thankful that there were no leftovers so she could just do the dishes.  
  
"You can watch TV if you want, I'll be out in a bit," Chichi said. Yamcha nodded, but didn't budge as she took the dirty dishes off of the table.  
  
He quickly wiped his mouth with a napkin and followed Chichi into the kitchen area.  
  
"Do you need any help?" he asked. Chichi raised an eyebrow at him and didn't reply.  
  
Rather stunned, he continued to approach her and helped put away some extra food that she didn't bring out to the table.  
  
"That was an amazing meal," Yamcha said breaking the silence.  
  
"Thank you," she replied while she scrubbed at the pile of dirty pots and pans. "I really appreciate it."  
  
"No problem." Yamcha walked toward Chichi watching and observing what she was doing. "I can get those for you."  
  
"Don't be silly," she said with a giggle. "I'm fine, this isn't that stressful."  
  
"No, really," he insisted.   
  
Yamcha raised his arms to her shoulders and began to massage lightly. Trying to seem uninterested so she could finish the dishes, she tried not to give in. Noticing that his tactics were not working, he slowly lowered his hands down her arms and to her hands. He took a small step forward and pressed himself against her back and proceeded to rest his head in the crook of her neck while he helped her scrub the dishes.  
  
He could feel her heart rate increase dramatically, which made him smile. The scent of sweet vanilla filled his senses as he closed his eyes and began to plant small kisses on her neck.  
  
"Yamcha," she murmured. "I'm so confused."  
  
He stopped for a moment and let what she said sink in.  
  
"So am I," he whispered in her ear. "But I'm not confused about this. Chichi… I think I…"  
  
"Shhh…" She quickly rinsed her hands off and brought her finger up to his lips to silence him. "That's not what I'm talking about. Believe it or not, I've thought about this for so many nights, and I know this is right and I know what I feel. Don't prove me wrong."  
  
Without a word or hesitation his arms wrapped around her waist and guided her to the small table in the center of the kitchen.   
  
As he lifted her onto the table he whispered, "Don't let me prove you wrong."  
  
~*~  
  
The next morning Chichi woke up with a rather large smile on her face. While peeking around the room she looked at the quaint clock on her wall and her eyes bulged.  
  
"Yamcha!" she said exasperatedly, "I completely forgot to pick up Gohan!"  
  
Yamcha woke violently and squinted until Chichi's face became clear.  
  
"He's a bright boy, I think he knows when he should come home," he remarked with a yawn.  
  
"And find us like this?" she asked with a sour face. At first he didn't notice what she was so upset about until he looked at the (very naked) two of them.  
  
"I guess you're right, but first…" He leaned over and cupped her jaw and pulled her close. Never had a kiss left her so breathless in her life. She bit her bottom lip and smirked a little.  
  
Meanwhile, Gohan was preoccupied with Trunks and Bulma a little worried about his mother not being there yet.  
  
"Bulma, can I talk to you about something?" Gohan asked nervously.  
  
"Of course, you can always talk to me about anything," she replied, kneeling down to eyelevel with him.  
  
"Well, lately mom's been acting a little weird. It's like I don't even know her anymore," he confided.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"She's been really happy lately," he said, dropping his eyes to the ground.  
  
"Why does that bother you? That's great!"  
  
"I think she's moved on, you know, from dad."  
  
"Well, that's a sign of progress, you don't want to see her moping around anymore, do you?"   
  
"Of course not, but it's the guy she's seeing," he murmured. "I like him, but it just isn't right!"  
  
"Who is it?"  
  
"It's Yam…"  
  
Suddenly the front door opened and Chichi walked in followed by Yamcha. Bulma's eyes grew as she stared at Gohan, not moving her head. He only nodded and faked a smile as he ran to his mother. Bulma had to hit herself in order to start breathing again.  
  
"W-well, what a s-surprise you two!" Bulma said with a very nervous laugh. They looked at her like she was crazy, in which she was about to be. "I was just about to drop Gohan off, but I guess I waited too long."  
  
"I hope that he wasn't a hassle for you, Bulma," Chichi said while patting Gohan on the head.  
  
"Right, if you want a problem child, you can have Trunks!" she joked. "Anyway, I've got to get back to work, big project that I'm… uh, Yamcha! I have something for you!"  
  
Yamcha raised his eyebrows and walked toward her.  
  
"Well, I'll see you around I guess," Chichi said to no particular person.  
  
"Bye," answered Bulma and Yamcha at the same time, earning a strange look from each other.  
  
As soon as Chichi left, Bulma grabbed Yamcha by the ear and pulled him to her lab ignoring his screams of pain.  
  
"What's this all about Bulma?" Yamcha whined while rubbing his aching ear.  
  
"You know damn well. I'm giving you one minute to explain."  
  
"Wha..?"  
  
"Starting now!" she growled.  
  
"Fine, but I don't know why you're pissed about it. I sort of kind of like Chichi, okay? Is that all?"  
  
Bulma looked at him with a very sour face and pointed to her watch.  
  
"It started out as me being a friend, in which I was, so don't…" he sighed and continued. "Anyway, I started to have feelings for her that I couldn't hide anymore and obviously she has the same feelings. It'll be a while before she gets over Goku, but at least I'll be there to console her."  
  
"You know, Gohan's a little more than worried, and so am I," she finally said. "Maybe you should think about everyone else in her life before you go and…"  
  
"I hope you know that it's more than a sexual attraction, Bulma," he snarled. "It isn't how we were."  
  
"What?" she asked rather shocked.  
  
"You know what I'm talking about. You found someone who you could be with," he pointed out, evidently talking about her and Vegeta. "I'm happy for you, why can't you be happy for me?"  
  
"Damn it Yamcha! This isn't about 'us' anymore! The 'us' died a long time ago," she shouted. "I just don't want you to hurt Chichi like you…"  
  
"Bulma, I'm sorry, but I'm in love with her and there's nothing you can do to change that. I know her pain," he said quietly.  
  
Bulma paused and then laughed sarcastically obviously a little more than angry at this point.  
  
"You know her pain? You know her god damned pain?! How dare you say that to me!" she screamed.   
  
All the commotion in her lab caught the attention of her baby along with Vegeta. He held his son and stood at the door, cautious about not interrupting them.  
  
"You want to talk about pain? Here's the pain I've dealt with while you were out having fun, Yamcha," she continued while wiping the tears off of her cheeks. "You're obviously forgetting one *minor* detail about our relationship. Maybe it was about the sex, but when things started going right, what happened?"  
  
"No…" he murmured.  
  
"You remember? Good! I've had to live with it while you went around the block a couple times," she heaved out. Vegeta began to listen more carefully now. "Pain is what I went through when I found out I was pregnant with your child Yamcha."  
  
Now Yamcha had a small amount of tears building in his eyes.  
  
"And what did you do? You were out the door in a matter of seconds! Said you weren't ready to settle down yet," she cried. "And now you think that you're going to do that to a friend of mine? To hell with you!"  
  
"But I've changed Bulma," he reasoned. "I'm not the man I was then."  
  
"No one changes their spots over night Yamcha, and I know for one that you can never love like that."  
  
Bulma collapsed to the floor and began to cry lightly. Yamcha wanted to make this right, but there's no way that he could.  
  
"You should leave now," a deep voice from behind him stated.  
  
Yamcha stood and left her house with his head hanging. On his walk home tears rolled down his face. He never wanted to remember that incident, even he knew he was a jerk for leaving her like that. She lost that child because she was so depressed about him leaving her.  
  
Maybe Bulma was right; he didn't know his own motives for being with Chichi. Maybe he was just taking advantage of her just because they both happened to be single at the time, but even he knew that wasn't right. He definitely knew one thing was for sure, he needed to talk to Chichi and her son. 


	5. Solution Goku Returns

After a long talk between Chichi, Gohan and Yamcha, a few things were put in order. For one, Gohan released a lot of things from his mind and straightened out his feelings about his mom and Yamcha being together. She explained thoroughly that he would never have to call him dad or claim him at all. Gohan agreed; after all, his mother was moving on and now his life would have a healthy balance again.  
  
Yamcha had moved in and a few months had passed. A few ironic things occurred at their house, such as Gohan training Yamcha when his mom was shopping and other crazy scenarios. Life was beginning to settle down and seem normal, then the unexpected happened.  
  
"Yamcha!" Chichi screamed from her room. His eyes bugged as he ran toward her scream.  
  
"What? What's wrong?" he clambered. He looked down at her hands to see a white something. "What's that?"  
  
"A little something that tells me a lot. Yamcha," she trembled happily, "I'm pregnant!"  
  
Yamcha looked at her in disbelief and fainted. Chichi blinked at him strangely and she continued to bounce around on her mattress. Gohan came into the room and quickly found out what all the commotion was about.  
  
"I'm gonna have a little brother?" Gohan asked excitedly.  
  
"Or sister, I don't know yet!" Chichi grabbed her face and started to roll around on the bed like a mad woman. Gohan raised an eyebrow and laughed at the passed out father-to-be and his out of control mother.  
  
Nine months later  
  
That night before they fell asleep Chichi snuggled next to Yamcha and sighed.  
  
"This is what I wanted when I wanted a family," she said. "And I didn't even follow the third time's a charm rule either."  
  
"I think I exceeded that limit," he said with a chuckle. "But I know what you mean. I guess fate threw us together in a weird way."  
  
He put his hand to her stomach were his child grew bigger everyday. Little kicks could be felt as he gently rubbed it. Suddenly, Chichi grabbed his arm and squeezed like the life was being drained out of her. His eyes got bigger as he looked at the painful look on Chichi's face.  
  
"M-my water broke," she stammered.   
  
Yamcha looked around a little panicked. He started to coach her through her breathing as he picked her up and woke Gohan up. A bright golden color engulfed the three as Yamcha flew them to the hospital.  
  
Through fifteen hours of screaming and ten gallons of sweat, finally a healthy baby boy was born. Gohan and Yamcha stood by her side as she was slowing her breathing and her eyes were slightly closing.  
  
"See mom, I told you it would be a boy!" Gohan teased.  
  
Chichi let out a little laugh as she adjusted her head on her pillow to see Yamcha.  
  
"I haven't thought of a name yet," she said. He shook his head gesturing that he hadn't either. "Gohan?"  
  
Gohan looked at the ceiling as he concentrated.  
  
"I know!" he cried. "This should suit him fine: Goten."  
  
Chichi smiled as she finally closed her eyes for some long awaited rest.  
  
~*~  
  
For a couple of months Chichi hardly got any sleep, but she wouldn't take it back for anything. She's always loved children and having them around this young was half the fun. Yamcha was very thankful that Chichi knew what she was doing because he felt so incredibly lost.  
  
As their family grew closer and Gohan began to grow into a very formidable young man, change was around the horizon once again.  
  
"I'm off to school mom!" Gohan shouted as he munched down some toast while running out the door.  
  
"Have a good day! This is only the tenth time you'll be late this month…" she complained. Yamcha came into the kitchen and engulfed her in a hug and kissed her.  
  
"Good morning," he whispered.  
  
"Mommy!" Goten yelled as he ran into the room. She pointed to two plates that awaited the two hungry people.  
  
Seven years had passed since Goku had passed away and Goten would be seven in eight more months. Gohan has matured into a very smart (kind of brainy) eighteen-year-old. Although she had gotten over Goku, it still pained her sometimes to see her baby Goten. He resembled Goku so much, yet his father was Yamcha. It drove her crazy to see Yamcha stare at Goten lovingly because she knew deep down that Yamcha saw the difference, too. However, nothing would prepare them for the upcoming news that would change their lives forever.  
  
One day when Gohan came home rather late once again, Chichi sat them all down at the table.  
"Mom, I've gotta tell you something," Gohan whispered from under his breath. She glanced at him as if telling him to go on. "Dad's coming back."  
  
Her eyes bugged as she yelled, "WHAT?"  
  
Yamcha and Goten dropped their chopsticks and stared at the two.  
  
"Why?" She asked while trying to calm herself down.  
  
"You know the martial arts tournament coming up? He told me that he gets to compete in it, and he'll only be here for one day."  
  
Chichi's eye twitched as he explained everything: the money, his want to be in it, and everything else.  
  
"Goku's coming back?" Yamcha asked. "Wow."  
  
Later that night Gohan was finding it very hard to fall asleep.  
  
"Gohan, who's G-Goku?" Goten asked.   
  
"He's my father Goten."  
  
"But I thought we were brothers!" he exclaimed.  
  
"Of course we are Goten, but…"  
  
"That means we have the same parents or else we wouldn't be related!" Goten said with a sniffle.  
  
"Goten…" Gohan said sadly. "We do have the same parents."  
  
"So Goku is my father?" he asked fairly fascinated.   
  
Gohan glanced at him with sad eyes and said, "Yes."  
  
"You told him what?" Chichi bellowed making Gohan wince.  
  
"I didn't mean to, I just didn't know how to answer him. He just seemed so happy to know that dad was his dad…"  
  
"Do you have any idea what you've just done?" she cried out. "You know damn well that Yamcha is his father and that's what Goten has been raised to know."  
  
Yamcha turned the corner and beckoned Chichi to follow him. She pursued him outside without hesitation.  
  
"Did you…"  
  
He nodded.  
  
"That was so irresponsible of him!" Chichi raged. "I never thought that Gohan would be capable of telling such a lie."  
  
Yamcha stared at her with hurt in his eyes. He sensed she was hurting now more than ever because of the recent events and because of their situation of Goku coming back. He calmly lifted his hands to her ivory face and lifted it - waiting until she looked in his eyes once again. His dark eyes pierced hers.  
  
"It's been so long and I nearly forgot… What are we going to do?" Chichi asked out loud, and collapsed into his arms. He held her tightly knowing they would need to find a solution, even if it would kill him.  
  
Even though it killed Yamcha he knew that she truly loved Goku, yet he knew that she loved him too, but not as deeply as she loved Goku. Mentally he made a snap decision and held her more tightly.  
  
"I'll be back later," he whispered. Chichi gasped at his words as her body went limp.  
  
He's leaving me, she thought. Tears poured out her eyes as he flew off into the blue sky. Gohan watched from the porch, his eyes narrowed in sadness.  
  
"Where'd he go?" he asked warily. Chichi didn't answer but walked by him back into the house. Goku would be back on earth in one month, why would Yamcha leave her now? Was he feeling bad about taking Goku's place?  
  
~*~  
  
Two days until Goku's return and still no sign of Yamcha. He really did leave me, she thought. Then a bright flash of light outside her window made her sit up quickly.  
  
Yamcha stood at the window with seven brilliantly flashing balls. Chichi didn't know what was going on and felt so confused. She ran to the window to open it for him.  
  
"I…" she started. He stared at her with soft eyes, and she noticed that he must have been crying for days. "Why do you have the dragonballs?"  
  
He pointed into her room where Goten lay on her bed. He had a bad dream and finally fell asleep in her room.  
  
"What do you have in mind?" she asked still rather confused. Yamcha placed the dragonballs in a small backpack carefully and stepped through the window.  
  
"Come with me," he said while picking up Goten.  
  
She followed him back out the window and toward the forest. Gohan heard them leave and out of curiosity followed them as well.  
  
They finally came to a clearing where Chichi laid Goten on the soft ground.  
  
"Chichi, I've thought of this for a long time and I know that I've made the right decision. I just hope that you realize that this is the only way…" he said hesitantly.  
  
"What are you talking about?" she said growing angrier by the moment.  
  
"Dig deep Chichi, I know you love me," he said. He walked closer to her and put his hands on her waist. She nodded but couldn't say anything. "But… I know that you still love Goku."  
  
"Yamcha!" She couldn't believe what he was saying. "Why are you saying this?"  
  
"Chichi, don't make this hard, please," he pleaded. "I've been searching for these dragonballs for weeks now. The solitary life I led for that time made me realize some things. You do love Goku, I know it."  
  
She shook her head but it only made Yamcha frown.  
  
"Don't lie to yourself Chichi, I know you do. I know that you still yearn to be with him, and I don't want to stand in the way."  
  
"But Yamcha, listen!" she urged. "Goku will always have a place in my heart, but I love you."  
  
He let what she just said roll off his back as he gathered the strength to tell her his plan.  
  
"I gathered these for one reason: I want to help you change your life back to before the way it was," he said. "I'm going to ask the dragon to change Goten from a human into a Saiyajin like he was meant to be."  
  
"You're talking crazy talk! Let's just go back home and talk about this…" she pleaded with him once again.  
  
"Chichi, you don't understand. Goku's life was stolen from him; he wasn't meant to die that day with Cell, but he did, and left his family broken. I didn't expect to get this close to you, but I did…"  
  
Chichi started to cry heavily as he started to choke out tears of his own.  
  
"But I would never take that back. I love you Chichi," he said while wiping his own tears.  
  
"If you love me, then why do you want to take it back?" she yelled. "If he's turned into a Saiyajin, you relinquish all those years together and your own son! WHY?"  
  
"Because… it's the right thing to do," he cried out. Without any more words, he unzipped his backpack and placed the seven balls close to each other.  
  
As he called the dragon forth, the couple cried. Those seven years healed the pain that had been inflicted upon them, but now those old wounds were going to be reopened.   
  
Chichi finally wiped her tears and stood next to Yamcha while waiting for the dragon to fill the black sky.  
  
"What is your wish?" the dragon bellowed, his voice booming across the vast sky.  
  
Chichi looked Yamcha in the eye and nodded. Now that he had her approval, he could go through with the wish.  
  
"I – we wish that Goten be changed from a human to a Saiyajin," Yamcha shouted.  
  
The dragon, suspended in mid-air, narrowed his eyes at the two standing below him and the young child lying on the ground. Yamcha seized Chichi's hand and squeezed it. She looked at him sadly knowing this was the right thing to do. The dragon didn't reply for a few moments, which began to worry the two.  
  
"If he can grant immortality, then he can grant this wish," he reassured her.  
  
"It can be done!" the dragon bellowed once again, his eyes glowing a dark crimson color ensuring that the wish had been granted. A bright gold light shot from the dragonballs toward Goten, engulfing him in a bath of light.  
  
"And for your second wish?"  
  
They stared at each other and realized that they had two wishes. Chichi inhaled deeply and took a step forward.  
  
"Our second wish is to erase Goten's memory of Yamcha being his father, but a family friend."  
  
Yamcha gripped her hand again and held her close. When the second wish had been granted they turned to each other once again.  
  
"Well, it's over I guess," she assumed.  
  
"Over for this dream of ours, but it's not over for you or your family."  
  
"You know I'll always love you," she said. He only nodded.  
  
Chichi picked up her still sleeping son and carried him into the house. Gohan emerged from behind a group of trees. He gave Yamcha an approving look and followed his mother in the house.  
  
Yamcha decided to ask Bulma if he could stay at her house for a while.  
  
~*~  
  
Finally the fateful day had come and everyone met at the tournament. Yamcha and Chichi gave each other a friendly hug. When Goku finally arrived, tears of happiness flowed from every one (except Piccolo and Vegeta, of course).  
  
Goku approached Chichi with a look of longing. She inhaled deeply knowing he would not know the details of the seven years that he hadn't been on Earth.  
  
Goten hid behind his mother's leg, staring at this strange man.  
  
"Goten, this is your father," Chichi said, not believing that she just said that.  
  
Goten's eyes lit up as he went running into Goku's arms. "Daddy!"  
  
"He looks like a little me!" Goku exclaimed.  
  
All those friends of theirs that didn't know of these past seven years were happy to see their unity but tears came from Chichi and Yamcha.  
  
"I'm so happy to be home and with my family," Goku said happily. 


End file.
